Ballast-cleaner.



W. I. TRENGHKT. A. G. ZEPP.

BALLAST CLEANER. APPLIGATION FILED APR. 24. 1912.

Patented Sept. 30, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

\ULUMBIA PLANOGRAPH CO.,WASH|NGTDN. u, c.

W. I. TRENCH & A. G. ZEP'P. BALLAST CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED Ammz, 1912.

1 ,074, 1 4:2. Patented Sept. 30, 1913.

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of the fills to widen the'embankment.

rinirnn STATES P TENT curios.

WALTER IRA. TRENCH AND ARTIMUS G. ZEPP, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

BALLAST-CLEANER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 30, 1913.

Application fi1ed'Apri124, 1912. Serial No. 692,998.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, WALTER IRA TRENCH and AR'rIMUs G. ZEPP, citizens of the United States of America, residing at the city of Baltimore, Statebf Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ballast-Cleaners, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a ballast cleaner.

Where stone ballast is used on railroad tracks, it is necessary to clean it from time to time, separating thedirt from .the stone. The cleaned ballast is returned to the roadbed and the dirt deposited on the shoulders In the past this work has been done with ballast forks, the dirt being shaken outfrom the stone, shoveled into handbarrows and carried away to be dumped on the fills as described. The ballast is cleaned in order to afiord the necessary drainage, as the road-bed which is not drained, cannot be kept ingood condition. 1

The object of our invention is to cheapen the laboriousand expensive ballast-cleaning operation.

To this end we have provided a cleaner which consists of a screen particularly adapted for use in connection with stone ballast, and means for supporting the screen so that the cleaned ballast is deposited in the desired position on the road-bed and the dirt is delivered to a wheelbarrow or other suitableqreceptacle by. means of which it may be conveyed to the slopes of the fills to be dumped. Thescreen is preferably of a type having an inclined net upon the upper portion ofwhich the. material to be separated is thrown, the separation or cleaning taking place as the material rolls down the net.

The device, in its preferred form, is convertible and may be used either at the side of the track or in. the center ditch of a double-track road. However, it is not necessarily convertible and maybe made solely for use in either position within the scope of our invention. When used atthe side of the track, the screen is placed with its plane of inclination at an angle to the rails, the net being inclined downward toward the track, so that the screened material is delivered adjacent the ends of the ties. To support the screen in this position, it is provided with a foot at its, lower or front end another foot, as hereinafter described, is

provided for use in the ditch between the tracks.

As the machine is of a considerable length in the direction of the plane of inclination of the screen, this length being greater than the distance which ordinarily separates the tracks, We find it desirable, in order not to obstruct either track when the screen is used in the central ditch, toplace it withits length, i. 6., the plane of inclination, in the direction of the track, 6. 6., parallel to the rails. Further, to the same end and in order that it may be easily moved along the track, We prefer to make it of an extreme width not exceeding the distance between the adjacent ends of the ties.

When the machine is used at the side of the road-bed, the material is shoveled up about the front of the screen and thrown on the inclined net in the usual manner, but

when the machine is used between the rails,

in order to be used effectively it is moved being deposited at its front end and the material to be cleaned being shoveled up at the rear. Under these circumstances it is most convenient to feed the material into the screen from the upper and rear end. For this purpose the screen, when used between the rails, is preferably adjusted at a less steep angle, so the top will not be too high for shoveling, and a hood, hopper or shield is provided to arrest the material and deflect it downward upon the screen. This hopper or hood is pivotally mounted adjacent the top end, and when the screen is used at the side, it is swung over the top end, forming a rear stop to prevent the material, thrown from the front of the screen, from passing over its top edge.

with the principles of our invention in connection with so much of a road-be'd as is necessary to illustrate the operation of the de vice.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal, vertical section through the screen and road-bed having-- a single track, the supports being shown in elevation. This shows the screen used at the side of the track. Fig. 2 is a section through the screen and trough taken on the line 2, 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the top end of'the' screen'take'n at right angles to Fig. 1. Fig. tis a section on the line 4, 4 of Fig. 1 showing the runner and foot or support adapted to engage the ties when the screen is used at the side of-the road or outside of the outer track. Fig. 5 is a vertical,

longitudinal section'through the screen and.

road-bed, the screen being placed in the central ditch. Fig. 6 is a transverse section through the road-bed, certain portions being broken away, the cleaner or screen being shown 'in' frontelevation.

Referring to the drawings, the separator consists of an inclined screen l-having a supp'ort'at the front consisting of feet- 2 with upright legs 3 secured't'o the front end of the screen, and a support at the rear consisting of upright-standards a adjustably, se-

cured to the frame of the screen by means of pivoted sleeves 5. These are adapted to slide along the standards and are held in adjusted position by pins 5. The standards 4 have feet 6, and thefront feet 2 are provided with runners 7 to engage the ties. Each foot 2 has'a forward extension 8 form ing a guide to engage the outside rail 9 and determine the position of the screen. Underlying the screen and secured theretoin any suitable manner,.in this case forming part of the frame, is a trough 10 having an opening 11 near the bottom for the escape of the separated dirt. This opening ll may be closed when desired by means of a trap door 12 having a hinge 13 at its lower edge. By

means of thisdoor the opening in the trough is closed to prevent escape of' the dirtwhen the receptacle is removed for the purpose of dumping a load. The screen, as described, is used at the side of the track, the runners 7 resting on the ties beyondthe outer rail 1, the-guides 8 bearing against the rail. The cleaner, when used at the side, is moved along the rail, the runner sliding over the ties, the material being thrown from the front on to the screen, and the cleaned ballast deposited around the ends of the ties.

The legs 3 with the feet 2 acting as supports for the front-or lower end ofthe screen, are removably secured to the screen by any convenient means as bolts 14, and for use as a support for the lower end of the screen or cleaner when operated between the tracks in the ditch, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, we have provided a short foot 15 with-a leg 16. This is necessary as the front foot in'this case rests onthebottom of the ditchand is coveredby the deposited stone, and the long foot 2 withthe runner'i, if-used inthis pov when usedat the'sicleofthe' track as in Fig. 7

1, the sleeves 5 beinggiven a'lower adjustment onv the uprights 1. Also in this position the door 12 is removed, as itwouldbein the way of the workmen in shoveling the material from the rear cleaner and throwing it on the screen. To this end the hinges 13 are made with a partly closed hook 17 from which the pin may be easily removed.

As has been previously'set forth, when the screenis used at theside of the road, as shown in Fig. 1, the material is shoveled from the frontof the screen after the usual manner of using" an' inclined screen. To prevent the material from being thrown over the end ofthe screen, we have provided a' hood 18; This is pivotally mounted at the upper end' ofthe screen frame and 7 adapted to be swung forward, as shown in Fig. 5, to form ahopper or guide for the material introduced from the rear over the V 7 ,top' of'the screen when working'in" the contral trench between the tracks.

,In Fig. 1 we have'shown a) wheelbarrow Eben'eath thecpening 11 to receive the dirt iand dump it on'the'side of the fills. In F ig. Z5 we have shown handbarro-ws for the same purpose, as this methodof transportation is more convenient when the dirt must be'car ried' over the rails.

It will be apparent that the machine which we have described is adapted to be conveniently-placedto deposit a large part of the cleaned ballast where desired; The remainder of the ballast isso delivered that itmay be easily throwninto the position" which it is to take; The cleaner may be used both at the side of the road and be tween the tracks, and when used in either position, may be easily moved alongthe' road so thata party suppliedwith the ma chines may move conveniently from end to endfof a given pieceof track and clean the ballast throughout its lengthatpredetermined intervals. 7

e have thus described our invention indetail in order that its nature and ope'ration may be clearly understood; However, thespecific terms hereinare used in their descriptive rather than their limiting sense I and the scope 'of' 'the invention is defined in the claims.

We claim 1. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of an inclined trough screen, a support at each end of the screen, the support at the lower end having a runner to rest and travel on the ties, the runner being placed forward from thebase of the screen so it spaces the base of the screen well back from the rails whereby the material which rolls down the screen is deposited at the side of the rails.

2. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of an inclined trough screen, a support at each end of the screen, the support at the lower end having a runner to travel on the ties and a guide to engage the rails, the guide being spaced forward from the screen so that it gives a space between the screen and the rail whereby the material is deposited at the side of the rail.

3. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of an inclined trough screen, means for adjusting the height of the support at the upper end of the screen, a support at each end of the screen, the support at the lower end having a guide to engage the rails, the guide being spaced well forward of the base of the screen so that the material is deposited at the side ofthe rail.

4. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of. an inclined trough screen, supporting means therefor, and a guide to engage the rail, the guide being spaced well forward from the base of the screen.

5. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of an inclined trough screen, means for supporting it, and a hood pivotally mounted to take a position closing the top end of the screen or to swing from that position through an arc of about 180 to a position in which it acts as a hopper or funnel when the material is introduced at the top end of the screen.

6. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of an inclined trough screen, means for supporting it, and a pivotally mounted hood at the upper end of the screen. i

7. A railroad ballast cleaner consisting of an inclined trough screen and supporting means therefor at both ends, the rear support being adjustable to vary the angle of the screen, and a pivoted deflector hood at the top of the screen adapted to close the upper end of the trough in one position to prevent material projected on the screen horizontally from going over the top, and in the other position,'to act as a deflector to catch and guide to the screen, material fed from the rear.

Signed by us at Baltimore this 23d day of April 1912.

WALTER IRA TRENCI-I; ARTIMUS G. ZEPP.

Witnesses:

ZELLA KUHN, EDWIN F. SAMUELS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. G. 

